Ever since Green Day formed as a band in 1987, there is no doubt that they have become one of the most iconic punk bands of all time. Now they have released a new album, Father of All…, which is the shortest in their long career at 26 minutes and 12 seconds.
You may know Green Day already for their popular LPs such as American Idiot, 21st Century Breakdown, and Dookie. They also have many well-known songs from those records such as Boulevard of Broken Dreams, 21 Guns, and Basket Case. However, Green Day has taken a more diverse approach with Father of All… and will be promoting it with a collaborative tour with Fall Out Boy and Weezer called the Hella Mega tour.
Opening the album, Green Day entertained us with Father of All…, the title-track and lead single, which we thought was very catchy and upbeat. It was a great addition to Green Day’s wide variety of songs since it had a modern twist in it. However, Radar thought that Green Day was attempting to appeal more to fans of Pop music, like what Panic! at the Disco did with their popular chart song High Hopes, which we didn’t expect listening to this song. We expected a more classic Green Day number but it does make sense to move with the times which they did.
If you’re looking for a less pop-punk feel, then we would recommend that I Was a Teenage Teenager. I know that the title of the song is ironic but this song stood out to us as its tone is reminiscent of older Green Day songs that we would listen to years ago. There are whispered vocals from Billie Joe Armstrong which reminded us of the way he would almost whisper some lyrics of 21 Guns. Lyrics such as “I don’t want to freak you out” and “who’s holding the drugs?” as well as the guitars used in this song is akin to American Idiot which lets them hold on to punk-rock roots.
Another memorable song is Stab You in the Heart. The instruments compliment each other nicely and Armstrong’s vocals are very strong and catchy. It’s fun in the sense that it’s easy for people to listen to and eventually sing along to. We believe that Stab You in the Heart is somewhat similar to the climactic scene in Back to the Future where Marty McFly performs Johnny B. Goode in the style of Eddie van Halen!
The final song Graffitia is a strong way to close the album. The drums introduced the song in a nice manner holding a steady rhythm throughout. It reminded us of pop songs from the 1980s that were played on the radio. Armstrong’s vocals shift constantly from whispers to his louder vocals he is well-known for. The tune is easy to get into and hard to get out of your head. There are repeated lyrics of “Are we the last forgotten?” which can be quite chilling and haunting at times. Graffitia fades out slowly instead of an abrupt ending like in other Green Day songs. I think it’s a great way to end the album because of that fade.
Overall, we would admit Father of All… is a strong contender for one of our favourite albums that we have listened to all the way through. Even though we were worried going in due to the pop vibe, we really enjoyed listening to it. Green Day has taken a diverse approach in producing this album which Radar appreciates in this new decade. We love how the band is trying to appeal to both potential new fans with some new sounds in songs like Fire, Ready, Aim and Oh Yeah! and their hardcore fans with classic sounds in songs like Sugar Youth and Meet Me on the Roof.
The Green Day’s experimentation of combining their classic sounds with newer, more modern music tastes was simply genius. Though this is their shortest studio album to date, we would say Father of All… is definitely one of their best albums yet and we can’t wait to hear more from them in the future!